North Korea orders a recall … of young scholars
While U.S. car manufacturers routinely announce major recalls to ensure the safety of drivers who operate their vehicles, North Korea uses the recall of citizens living abroad to ensure the safety of the family dynasty continuing to control the country. Like computerized vehicles occasionally in need of reprogramming, so too are Pyongyang’s citizens exposed to the outside world, lest they pose a serious threat to North Korea’s existence. This threat is better understood knowing how the governments of the two Koreas evolved.
Japan had ruled the Korean peninsula from 1910-1945. After Japan’s defeat in World War II, the peninsula stood divided between two opposing interests: the north, occupied by the Soviet Union, and the south, under U.S. occupation. Both sought to recreate their respective regions into their own image: the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), known as North Korea, and the Republic of Korea (ROK), known as South Korea. In the former, the Soviet Union sought to establish a communist satellite state headed by a compliant dictator; in the latter, the U.S. sought to establish an independent and free nation. Each claimed legitimacy as the government for all of Korea.
The Soviets had a much easier time establishing North Korea in its own image than did the United States in South Korea.
The Soviets falsely promoted to the North Korean people the image of Kim Il-sung as a courageous guerrilla fighter against the Japanese whose status entitled him to lead the North. In reality, he was a Soviet proxy. But so indoctrinated into the mindset of North Koreans and so effective was Kim in creating a brutal police state that he effectively ruled for almost half a century, until his 1994 death.
Years prior to his death, Kim prepared the country to embrace something no other communist state had successfully done before – a family dynasty – by promoting his own son, Kim Jong-il, as “crown prince.” The success of this mindset was reflected 17 years later in 2011 when Kim Jong-il passed with the reins of power falling into the hands of his son, Kim Jong-un, 27. Thus, North Korea has been ruled for over three-quarters of a century by the Kim family dynasty.
Despite U.S. efforts to promote freedom and democracy in South Korea, it proved difficult to shake its leaders’ lust for power over the personal freedoms of their people. This was most adamantly reflected by its third president, Park Chung Hee, who effectively served as a dictator for 18 years before becoming, in 1979, the first Korean leader to be assassinated in over 600 years. Ironically, Park was a victim of his own CIA, which he had used to ensure he retained power. While the U.S. had introduced a constitutional democracy in the South in 1948, it would take nearly two more decades for true democracy to be embraced, with the country’s first opposition party candidate not elected until 1997.
While the South spent the later decades of the 20th century achieving true democracy, the North devoted those same decades to reinforcing its dictatorial foundation. Each generation of the North’s Kim leaders was immortalized. Their promotion as god-like so enamored them to the North Korean people they were easily accepted as eternal rulers of the country.
An outrageous but hilarious example of how the North Korean media sought to promote the Kims as superhumans appeared in a 1994 story about Kim Jong-il, an avid golfer. A country with but one golf course, the tale was told that Kim shot 38 under, including 11 holes-in-one. (Fittingly, he died at age 69 – a number considered under par on every regulation golf course in the world!)
No heir apparent to current North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, 40, has officially been announced. While known to have at least one child – a daughter – rumors of his possible illness began circulating the name of a possible heir. He may be grooming his country for its first female president, suggested by the high-profile responsibilities given to his 37-year old sister, Kim Yo-jong. Her persona reveals a brutish mindset as well, with a book published in 2023 dubbing her as “The Most Dangerous Woman in the World.”
Recently, Kim Jong-un sent out a “recall” notice for all North Korean students abroad to return home for “political indoctrination.” This suggests he recognizes these students are susceptible to a deadly threat (from Pyongyang’s perspective) endangering the government – one triggered by independent thinking bringing into question the unchallenged continuing Kim family leadership role.
The recall seeks to re-indoctrinate students by reinforcing their allegiance to their dictator. “Sanctuary of learning” sessions regularly held in the massive Grand People’s Study House in Pyongyang prior to the 2020 pandemic are now being restarted. Their one-sidedness is evidenced as all books used are of North Korean origin, with a few published outside the country requiring special permits to access.
While it is estimated there are only 1,100 students involved in the recall, Pyongyang recognizes the danger a single independent-thinking student poses to its control. Such thinking in the past has manifested itself in numerous defections, with pressure taken against defectors’ families to gain their return.
Some recalled students may harbor concerns they have been reported to North Korean authorities for questionable behavior. This could include something as innocent as dating a foreigner. The Pyongyang government may well believe some students have been “tainted” and, therefore, may not be allowed to continue their education abroad. It would be interesting to know how many of the students are concerned enough about this that they choose not to return or how many who do return home, fail to return abroad.
While it took time to do so, South Korea has demonstrated the superiority of man’s free thinking and free spirit in ridding himself from the yoke of human bondage. It is reflected in its robust economy and success on the world stage, particularly compared to the North. Nonetheless, the Kim family will seek to continue its brutal reign, embarking upon a reeducation recall to nip in the bud the serious threat to its existence it perceives.
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